Homeland Security Hints At New Details About New Mexico Judge Arrest

Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation on Friday that former New Mexico Democrat Judge Jose “Joel” Cano is being charged with “tampering with evidence” following his arrest Thursday.

On Thursday afternoon, KFOX14 captured video footage of Cano and his wife Nancy Cano being taken into custody outside their Las Cruces, N.M., home as federal officials executed a search warrant and probable cause arrest warrants. In addition, HSI said that in conjunction with other federal law enforcement partners, Nancy is also charged with “conspiracy to tamper with evidence as part of an ongoing HSI-led criminal investigation.”

“At this stage of the investigation, there are concerns about evidence tampering and destruction,” HSI special agent Jason T. Stevens said. “However, to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation and any future proceedings, we are unable to release specific details. We are committed to transparency, and we will provide further information as soon as it is prudent to do so.”

KFOX14 footage of the event showed Canos and his wife standing by vehicles with their hands cuffed behind their backs, as agents wearing HSI and FBI vests stood nearby. In March, Cano resigned from his position in New Mexico after 23-year-old Venezuelan national Cristhian Ortega-Lopez was arrested by authorities on his property the month prior.

According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), federal authorities executed search warrants in February related to unlawful firearm possession and other offenses involving four illegal migrants, including Ortega-Lopez. Investigators said Ortega-Lopez, who is suspected of being affiliated with Tren de Aragua, illegally entered the U.S. in 2023 before being released “pending removal proceedings,” according to the DOJ.

A report by the Albuquerque Journal, which obtained court documents, showed Ortega-Lopez met Nancy Cano and eventually accepted her offer to stay in a “casita” behind their Las Cruces home. An investigation into the illegal migrant began due to him “allegedly residing with other illegal aliens in Las Cruces,” and he “had been in possession of firearms,” according to the DOJ.

Ortega-Lopez was officially charged by criminal complaint with being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm or ammunition.